Review of The Place Beyond the Pines (2013) by Devin C — 08 Jan 2014

This is a perfect example of a good film with no lasting impact. It is exactly the sort of movie you forget moments after the credits begin to roll. That isn't to say I disliked it, but it failed to deliver the emotional punch to make it worthwhile.

The story is split into three parts, with each part following a new character that continues a singular plotline. So given that fact, I am sure that the path it takes will end up surprising those who saw the trailer. I won't go into detail into what that path is, to do that would be to essentially give away the entire film. And I think that might be part of the problem I had with it. To tell you anything about the movie would be to tell you everything about it. There isn't much subplot to be had. Now I'm sure people will point out something that I missed, but the point is that essentially what happens happens and that's all.

Typically, I'm not one to suggest that film be heavy handed with a message it wants to convey. Nobody likes a film that gets too preachy. But I wish there was some sort of dramatic cue that helped me out. Instead what we get is essentially a documentary. There isn't a bad character, there isn't a good one. There isn't any sense of who we should care about or why. It is simply real life filmed in movie quality. It's the sort of film I personally tend to avoid.

For me, the key to a drama is emotional resonance. I want to feel something when it's over. I want to have an opinion about something that I saw. For me this film never does that. And while I found each of its individual parts done well, the sum wasn't enough to reach me.

Despite my misgivings, I will give this a tentative recommendation. As I said it is well done, so perhaps a person more attune to this style of filmmaking will glean more from it. 6/10.